3.27.2013

I was long overdue for a color touch-up, so I thought I'd photograph the process for my friends who've been asking about dyeing with henna.

Disclaimer: Everyone has different hair, and everyone's hair reacts differently to henna. I can't tell you exactly what color you'll end up with. It's kind of something you have to be willing to experiment with! Also, if you have colored your hair with a chemical dye, it's probably best that you don't use henna. Henna can interact in unpredictable ways with other dyes, and I'd hate for you to walk away with green hair!
Lastly, I'm sharing the henna recipe that works for me. You can tweak it, and you may see others using different ones. It's not an exact science. As long as you have good quality henna and a liquid acid, you'll be fine.

The day before you want to dye your hair, mix up around 100-200 grams of henna with the vinegar. You'll want to add the vinegar gradually while mixing until you've created a paste the consistency of thin pudding.

Next, add a few drops of the lavender oil. Then cover your henna with plastic, and keep in a warm place for at least 12 hours.

Uncover. You can tell if your henna is ready by scraping the surface with a spoon. If the color of the paste on top is darker than underneath, you're ready! It should looks like this:

If needed, you can add a bit of water to get it back to the thin pudding consistency.

Now you are ready to apply!

With clean, dry hair, don gloves and start applying the henna to small sections of hair at a time.

Start with the top layer of hair. Apply henna from the root to the tip, making sure to coat the underside of the strand as well. When you finish with one strand, roll it up and stick it to the top of your head to keep it out of the way.

Continue working in layers, applying henna and rolling up the strands.

Then gather all your hair and mush it around to ensure the henna is evenly distributed.

Feel free to experiment with new hairstyles.

Flatten your hair so it lays as close to your scalp as possible.

Cover it with plastic wrap, or a plastic grocery bag. Hide for the rest of the day. I left the dye in for about five hours. Leave it in as long as you can stand it, at LEAST three hours.

Take off the bag and rinse out the henna until the water runs clear.

Tada! The color will develop and darken over the next two to three days.